don't blink

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Don't Blink

I turned on the evening news
Saw an old man being interviewed
Turning a hundred and two today
Asked him what's the secret to life
He looked up from his old pipe
Laughed and said "All I can say is"

(CHORUS) Don't blink
Just like that, you're six years old and you take a nap and you
Wake up and you're twenty-five and your high school sweetheart becomes your wife
Don't blink
You just might miss your babies growing like mine did
Turning into moms and dads next thing you know your "better half"
Of fifty years is there in bed
And you're praying God takes you instead
Trust me friend a hundred years goes faster than you think
So don't blink

I was glued to my TV when it looked like he looked at me and said
"Best start putting first things first"
Cause when your hourglass runs out of sand
You can't flip it over and start again
Take every breathe God gives you for what it's worth

(CHORUS) Don't blink
Just like that, you're six years old and you take a nap and you
Wake up and you're twenty-five and your high school sweetheart becomes your wife
Don't blink
You just might miss your babies growing like mine did
Turning into moms and dads next thing you know your "better half"
Of fifty years is there in bed
And you're praying God takes you instead
Trust me friend a hundred years goes faster than you think
So don't blink

So I've been tryin' to slow it down
I've been tryin' to take it in
In this here today, gone tomorrow world we're livin' in

(CHORUS) Don't blink
Just like that, you're six years old and you take a nap and you
Wake up and you're twenty-five and your high school sweetheart becomes your wife
Don't blink
You just might miss your babies growing like mine did
Turning into moms and dads next thing you know your "better half"
Of fifty years is there in bed
And you're praying God takes you instead
Trust me friend a hundred years goes faster than you think
So don't blink

Naw, don't blink
Life goes faster than you think

Time

Wow! My kids are going up so fast. (The lament of every mom??) Last night Alex and Rachel made dinner for the first time. Alex made breaded chicken strips, and Rachel mad the salads and yogurt/berry appetizers. A surprise for their daddy's birthversary week. Our big girl Alex, with her large striking brown eyes, is now in fourth grade; beautiful, strong and bright. Freckle-faced Rachel is in third; smart as a whip, artistic and creative, and cute.

Learning to Stand Up

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Some of the values that I want to teach are girls are tolerance, diversity, and standing up for what you believe in--not sitting back assuming someone else will take on the status quo to effect meaningful change. Even if that change isn't about you personally - but about inequality and basic fairness. Stand up for your neighbor - one day you may need them to stand up for you.

We want to teach them to appreciate what they have—their lot in life. They were born to two educated parents. Live comfortably in one of the most beautiful (albeit expensive) cities in the country. They have two committed and dedicated parents who love them, food on the table, clothes on their backs, books, toys, and dance and soccer and..., For these things we should all be grateful. Our children were born with more opportunities and material things than 90% of the children in the world.

They are not entitled to these things. A lot of life is who you are born to and where you are born. Kids in war-torn Afganistan and Iraq are no less deserving than Rachel and Alex. Kids born to single moms, or poverty, or drug addicts, or abusive parents, or with disabilities - none are any less deserving than our children.

Along with tolerance, diversity, and courage, we want to teach our children to help others. People who face challenges in life that our kids won't. From the kid who is being bullied on the playground to the family who doesn't have enough food to eat or money to buy holiday presents.

Tweeting on the Blog

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OK - Have I forgotten how to write a reasonable blog post??

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Tuning In

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To many times I seem to find myself putting my kids off, asking them to wait while I finish this phone call, conversation, email or text.

2012: Tune in.

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Colorado Rocky Mountain Sky

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I just love the Colorado sky - so much character and color! Earlier this week the girls and I saw what looked like a hurricane in the sky.

It was amazing!! So glad I had my camera handy ;-)

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My little bug

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Birthday Hugs from Little Ray!!

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2012 & Three years from 50

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Today I turned 47. Wow that's a big number!

There are several things that I've been meaning to do for the past several years. Things that I know would make me happy, make me a better person, a better mother and wife. But...,

We all have that little word (but) that holds us back from going after what we really (or think we really) want. For me it boils down to a fear of failing. Which is crazy because by definition, not trying at all is the biggest failure there is.

And, if I'm being honest, a bit of laziness too. On this challenge I really need to just suck it up, make up my mind to move and get started.

So what are those things??

1.) Creating, launching, building my portrait photography business.

2.) Getting healthy. Exercise and diet.

Neither of these should be insurmountable. Neither of these are insurmountable. It's just a matter of getting started - starting now.

Words for 2012: Fit & Frugal.

Goals and milestones? I'll get back to you on this by Friday of next week.

Also - I'm reading the Happiness Project, which I hope will help spur me on.

xoxxo,
C

Exploring Colorado

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We arrived in Colorado more than 6 months ago and have easily survived what everyone is telling us was a 'very mild' winter. Spring seems to be coming our way - early, thankfully. The grass is starting to turn green and the weather is beginning to brighten and warm.

This weekend, the girls and I took an exploratory drive around Boulder County and found wonderful, happy things....,

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Absorbing family values...,

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Earlier today, the girls and I set out to give boxes of girl scout cookies to the homeless folks down on Pearl Street. On the way Rachel said, "Momma, I know it seems like they don't have anything, but they do have something. They have love - they can love, give love. So they do have something."

It was a day of lots of discussion. Alex asked if people were born homeless and I was about to answer her with all the adult issues of homelessness and its plethora of causes, but I stopped mid-sentence. "Yes, sadly, some babies are born to mommies and daddies who don't have homes." "We're lucky," she said. "We have a home. When we give them the cookies, I hope it makes them happy."

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My babies

My babies are growing up fast. They're now two little girls - not babies, not toddlers. Little girls with friends at school and an entirely separate life from us. A life outside of our home, beyond our eyes and arms. On some level, it's a leap of faith.

Time is flying too fast and I'm missing minutia.

Rachel looses her 1st tooth!!

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Little Rachel has FINALLY lost her first tooth. She's been waiting, semi-patiently - for soooo long.

It was quick mommy thinking when Rachel ran in to tell us that she'd lost her tooth and then began to cry when she realized that she'd SWALLOWED it!! (I didn't know people ever actually did that!)

"Rachel, Sweetie, let me see that chocolate egg," I said. "I'll bet you just lost it in that gooey center."

"NO! It's gone, I swallowed it!!"

There was some discussion about waiting until she pooped and searching for it there, but she relented and let me 'search' the chocolate egg. I took the egg ran upstairs and grabbed one of Alex's baby teeth, which, for some unknown reason, the tooth fairy kept giving back to me.

"Found it!" I called, and came downstairs proudly holding 'Rachel's 1st lost tooth.'

Crisis averted, we pulled out the Tooth Fairy pillow and prepared her tooth for pick up. She was over the moon!!

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My own private world...,

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OK - I've moved my blog to my own private world. My thought and family memoir for our eyes only. At least for now. With Twitter and Facebook, we're public enough. It's nice to have a little it of the cyber world - just for us.

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Wondering who you are...,

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I'm wondering who it is that is still looking at our family blog. I've been an infrequent blogger for the past year or so - and am amazed to see stats that say I have 5 visitors a day!

So...., who are you? Leave a comment and let me know...,

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Girl Scouts

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Both the girls joined Girl Scouts just as soon as they started a new school. I think it's helped them both settle in and make new friends.

We're now in the midst of "Cookie Season," which is going to cost us at least $50.00 in cookies. Lord knows we can't eat all those, so we're donating them to the local homeless. I'm hoping this will help them learn just how lucky we are and how much we have.

I'm so happy to see their smiles and hear their giggles. Soooo love them, all they are, and all they're going to be.

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Emerging....,

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Looking through my old photos, I've been having a little fun with Photoshop, making them a bit more interesting with a bit more pop. Here are two identical photos with different treatments....,

Thought both of these were fun.

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Wondering about

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Well. Here I am again. Wondering about with little to do...., I sleep a lot. And, although I'm incredibly well-rested, I'm not feeling great about how I'm spending my days. Getting a bit lost in this big world again.

This mom thing is a little tricky. I want to be home for my kids, but I don't want to 'limit' my own future. That said, I'm not really sure what that means.

This time my quandary really isn't about money. It's about finding something that I care about, or, preferably, passionate about. The silly question? Yes, I'm passionate about my kids and my husband, but--harking back to past blog posts--I'm still in search of something more.

My job at Kaiser was a bit of a farce. I was there during a crazy time for the department, and I didn't give it my all. Especially at the end of my three-year tenure there. I'd lost pretty much all respect for my boss, and an organization rampant w/ infidelity and questionable morals.

Halloween in our New Home

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After just three months in our new home, I thought we might have a smaller Halloween party than usual. Not sure how many people would come to the "new comer's party," I invited more people than I usually do. HA!! All 55, plus a few extra RSVP'd and showed up!!

I was a huge party, and soooo fun! Adults and kids in costume, a big bouncy, games, and the traditional pinata!! So awesome....,

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Momma

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390 times a day I hear the word "Momma."

After staying with us for the weekend, Julia said next time she's here she's going to keep count. "That would drive me NUTs," she said.

It's become so much a part of my daily life that I don't even notice, but I realized that someday they'll be gone and I won't hear "Momma" countless times a day, every day. The thought of my world becoming oddly silent without it made me sad.

"Momma"

That little word expresses so much. Love. Need. Hurt. Want. Kindness.

To be needed and loved and appreciated - there is nothing more wonderful in this life. It makes it all worthwhile.

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OK - The kids are settled. Dave is settled. Now it's time to start my new life in Colorado.

I read a quote on a friends FaceBook page today; "The only thing that stands between a person and what they want in life is often merely the will to try it and the faith to believe its possible."

Couldn't have said it better. I dream of building a photography business and creating beautiful images that people will cherish for a life time and the only thing standing between me and my dream is my fear.

*sigh*

I need a plan, a time line...,

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